


The Crazy Cat Laughs

by RainedMirror



Series: These Melodies We Call Life [8]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Galra Keith (Voltron), Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-24
Updated: 2018-04-24
Packaged: 2019-04-27 13:21:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,521
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14426298
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RainedMirror/pseuds/RainedMirror
Summary: It is a regret that he had no control over.





	The Crazy Cat Laughs

There is a glint of evilness behind Keith’s initial smirk. He wasn't expecting anything much from a message from a ‘traitorous half-Galra’ as the others so put it, but it is still strange to see his adopted brother take on that position. 

Keith just stood there with a smirk, play button beckoning to be pressed for the communicator play its recorded message. Shiro knew he insisted that the team watch any left over messages, ‘to find any possible leads’ was the excuse he had, but all Keith talked about were things about himself and Voltron. So to the rest of the team, Keith was good as hiding as a traitor, and to Shiro, only proved Keith was not guilty and… well… 

Doesn't matter much at the moment, for Coran immediately pressed play, seeing Keith's stance made the rest of the team sure that it was the one where Keith hid information. 

Keith just clapped slowly, one and a time, while retaining his smirk. 

‘I am recording in short notice at the Blades’ headquarters at the moment, but. If you guys are watching this then you guys likely froze my stupid half-Galran body and then shot me out into space while I was still alive.’

Ah. Right. So Keith did predict that. Shiro’s face betrayed a sense of guilt, but the others were to sternly staring the communicator. 

‘Congratulations. You found your stupid traitor.’ Keith’s words turned into sneers. ‘The Red Paladin that did nothing but helped to protect and defend the cause you guys had. That didn't know about his heritage earlier than the rest of you. That tried his best to do everything in your cause. Pretty bad traitor, huh?’

Shiro wanted to look away at the moment. 

‘I am going to predict the following events: You sedated both me and Shiro and then shoved me into a burial pod and fired me into space. No wait, that is exactly what you guys did. Cause you knew Shiro would defend this stupid traitorous bastard!’ 

Keith devolved into a crazed laughter, approaching pure evil manic insanity as the other Paladins cast an apologetic glance to Shiro, but Allura and Coran still stared at the screen in excitement.

‘In any case, I hope you have fun trying to be Defenders of the Universe without your replaceable, useless and traitorous Red Paladin. I am just going to be floating around in space. You know, being forced to be dead and all. End of message from your dear traitor in Voltron.’

Allura’s face seemed to have lit up being proven Keith was in fact a traitor at the end of the message. Shiro noticed and slowly snuck away back to the Black Paladin’s room in defeat. 

\----

If anything Shiro hated admitting, it was usually to do with Keith. And while he knew Keith was likely acting, it wasn't anything he could do about it. The others seem fully convinced that hammy act was the real deal. 

Shiro cursed as he walked around the room, before noticing another communicator with ‘For Shiro’ on to it. 

Letting it get the better of him, he turned it on, to find Keith in that same position he saw earlier. 

Pressing play, Keith immediately switched from a evil smirk to a defeated sigh. 

‘You know, I can't do this…’

Huh? 

‘If you're watching this, I hope you are Shiro. And just Shiro, since I hid this in Shiro’s room after all. I am going to assume you have also watched all the other communicators in my room to try and find evidence of me being a traitor.’

Keith held his fingers to make quotation marks on that last word, before sighing again. 

‘I don't want to play the villain. I was going to delete that other one on the off chance you guys would have accepted me, but… It appears that I was right to make others think I am a traitor, I guess. I am not going to keep doing that, you know what I mean.’

Shiro widened his eyes upon hearing that. 

‘I guess in the end, I was just a scapegoat after all, even after all I have done for the team and Voltron and everything… Hehe… Such a useless thing… I don't know what I am anymore…’

Keith devolved into laughter, just like in the other communicator, but this was slower and tinged with a lot more tears. 

‘I guess I have to stop crying now, I have to record the fake act. Don't hate me for this, okay? They need to forget me after all, if they won't accept me. And being the villain only makes that easier. Okay, Nii-san?’

The message stopped there. The halls echoed with Shiro’s tears and the repeated teary laughter of Keith.  
\-----

Keith didn't expect to wake up. Keith didn't expect the Blades to pick him up. Keith didn't expect of all the Blades for his mother to pick him up. 

But there he was instead, having gone undercover alongside his sister as one of Lotor’s most trusted generals. And still having a connection to the Red Lion, with an ease to dethrone whatever replacement Voltron could find. 

If Voltron made any comparison with him and Zarkon, he could only bitterly laugh, for it is the act he could only play by himself. 

\-----

It is a fight where they are on opposite sides. And unlike training, this is serious, this is real. Keith’s Galran features curved into a evil grin, fitting of a ‘traitor’. 

‘Voltron, we meet.’ He snickers a bit. ‘Kylov’s the name. I will have no need to know yours.’ And with that, he lunges into battle. 

Like back in Voltron, Keith easily wipes the floor. And as Shiro easily knows, only he could beat him one on one back then, and even that was when Keith was showing restraint after all that additional training he put in. 

Keith wasn't showing restraint at all, easily knocking down every other Paladin but him. 

Then he stared him, and suddenly he beckoned him to chase, cackling down the hallway as Shiro desperately try to catch up. 

\-----

They were trapped together in a single room. That much was clear. Keith dropped the act when he was alone with him. 

‘Shiro.’ Keith’s voice was firm, and Shiro looked up. His Galran features were no more, and were replaced by the human features he knew so well. 

‘Keith…’ Shiro’s voice wavered a bit. 

‘Shiro. You know what you must do. You have to kill me.’

‘Keith, I…’

‘Reinforcements are coming soon, and I can't pilot the Red Lion being stuck here. You have to kill me, sever the bond for the next Paladin to take my place.’

‘You don't have to do this! I can convince them to…’ Shiro’s voice faltered. He has tried. He has already tried. And failed. Multiple times. 

Keith bitterly laughs again. ‘I tried calling for you, you know. They said they sedated you as I was being shoved into that cursed burial pod. Clearly they don't trust you as much as I do.’

‘Then I will join you! You can't keep this act alone!’ The words left Shiro’s mouth before he realised the implications. 

‘Can you? Fake being the Champion? It is tiring to keep up the act, you know. But you were always as stubborn as I was, even you don't admit it.’

The loud pounding on feet can be heard outside the room. 

‘Ready? It's showtime, my dear Champion.’ Keith swiftly switched to his Kylov persona, complete with Galran features. 

As Shiro started the act by attacking his teammates, he couldn't help but notice Keith fake another evil smile. 

\-----

Shiro realised that going on Blade missions were a lot tougher than being in Voltron. Especially one as far undercover as Keith and his family was. Krolia and Axca both took up high positions, but Keith supposedly managing to gain back the Champion earned him the favour of the empire, allowing for even further infiltration than ever. 

Kolivan might have been surprised to see him with Keith, but as per his promise, he is doing whatever Keith is willing to do. 

And Allura may or may not stormed through the Blades finding him, but he is out undercover in Lotor’s army, so he wasn't going to deal with her and her irrational fears of having Galrans on her side. 

In any case, with or without Voltron, the empire was overthrown successfully. Keith sits next to him as the older Blades went to deal with the fallout. 

‘Are you okay with this? Not being able to go back to Earth to see your family? Being treated as a enemy that whole time? I found mine, and they are still alive you know…’

Shiro turned to look at Keith. They were important questions after all. 

Pausing for a thought, Shiro finally gave a nod. ‘Yeah. I think I'll be okay with that.’

Keith gave a light chuckle. ‘I guess I will get Kaa-san to sign the adoption papers then.’

And for the long time in forever, Keith smiled a normal smile. And Shiro found himself smiling with him.

**Author's Note:**

> And we're back with the regularly scheduled dose of angst.
> 
> Edit: Extended the story, and gave it a better ending.


End file.
